BSO identifies 2 men who died in Everglades plane crash near Weston
FORT LAUDERDALE - The Broward Sheriff's Office has released the names of the two men who died Tuesday evening in a small plane crash in the murky waters of the Everglades off I-75 near Weston.
BSO identified the victims as Khadim Kebe, 37, of Texas and Mohamed Badenjki, 51, of North Miami Beach.
"We found two occupants, unfortunately, they were deceased," said Broward Sheriff Fire Rescue Battalion Chief Michael Kane.
The single-engine Cessna 172 Skyhawk took off from North Perry Airport in Pembroke Pines around 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, according to FlightAware, flying just 29 miles.
"It possibly went off the radar at 6:45 p.m. We weren't alerted until this morning around 10:30 a.m.," said Kane.
According to BSO dispatch they learned of the crash when a girlfriend of one of the men on board called, saying she hadn't heard from them and the phone was off.
The plane broke apart on impact near mile marker 28.
"Our local fire station, about three or four miles away, responded with their airboat and other assets. They were able to make contact with that aircraft very quickly, about 40 minutes time. Unfortunately, the two occupants of that aircraft were already deceased," said Kane.
The crash sparked a small fire on the debris.
"There is a small fire burning around the aircraft most likely due to the fuel that was onboard the aircraft and during the crash it probably ignited," said Kane.
The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) will investigate.
